Game 6: Rangers-Flyers in review

1) Well, the best part for you guys and for the Rangers is that they don’t lead the series. Because since 2009, while they’ve been lousy when leading a series — a record 12 straight losses with the series lead — they’ve been pretty darn good when tied or behind. They’ve been good facing elimination. They’ve been good in Game 7s, winning three in a row, two of those at home, where they are 5-0 all-time.

2) That said, all the stats on earth, all the history for the Rangers or the Flyers, or between them … everything that has happened in this series to this point, including last night’s lopsided 5-2 Flyers win, won’t mean jack squat in Game 7 tonight. Not even a little bit. Momentum never, ever, ever, never carries over from one game to another in a playoff series. It has no bearing on what happens in the next game. Every game starts new, and if you don’t believe it, go back and look at how the other series have gone down, or all of last year’s series. Look at how often a team loses a gut-wrenching game and comes back to win the next game.

3) So the winner tonight gets the chance to play five more games. Because this kind of uneven play won’t cut it against the Penguins.

4) But enough of that. As good as the Rangers were in Game 5 — and I watched that game again, and they were really good, almost top to bottom, especially on the PK and defending — they were equally as bad in Game 6. Yeah, they had the great start, had the momentum-killing penalty by Benoit Pouliot and the power-play goal, still controlled the rest of the first period … then folded like a cheap lawn chair. Just played a frenzied, panic-looking game and let the Flyers run amok thereafter. Looked like a fragile group, for sure, and they are fragile if they couldn’t regroup after that first period and the penalty.

5) Daily Nash-O-Meter. Needle pointing straight down now. One goal, 18 playoff games for the Rangers. Did he even play? Had zero impact at all. And, yeah, he wasn’t alone. His linemates Martin St. Louis and Derek Stepan were ghosts, too. And the second/third line of Mats Zuccarello, Derick Brassard and Pouliot the penalty machine has really accomplished almost nothing this series. Especially Brassard.

6) But before we blame all the usual suspects, let’s be honest. This was a dreadful game for Ryan McDonagh and Dan Girardi. Especially Girardi, who had been a monster in the series. Tried to thread a pass on the PK instead of icing the puck, had it picked by Claude Giroux and ended up in the net. Coughed one up on another of Simmonds’ three goals, which was a tad lucky in that Brayden Schenn whiffed on a shot and it ended up going through McDonagh and onto Simmonds’ stick. McDonagh struggled right around the paint all night. And the Rangers defended Simmonds as if he was wearing one of those non-contact jerseys.

7) So the Flyers’ top goal scorer, Simmonds, scored three. The Rangers’ top goal scorer. He had three fewer.

8) Steve Mason was better than Henrik Lundqvist, and you could say that whether you thought Lundqvist was good or decent or mediocre or awful. Mason was just plain excellent, especially in the first period. And the Rangers apparently forgot those discussions about hos he has the glove on the other side, and with a big, tall guy like that, the glove is probably the last place you want to shoot it. Who knows? Maybe he comes in and throws another beaut and then heads off to Pittsburgh. Or maybe he coughs up a furball in his first Game 7.

9) The fine NHL officiating kept up its playoff streak. I mean, the Pouliot penalty was a no-brainer. Most of the Rangers penalties were, indeed, penalties. But Giroux, who has been diving from the start of the series, almost did a backflip on the Pouliot one-handed grab, and was not called for embellishment. Which is OK with me, I guess, only if you’re not going to call all the other embellishment penalties the rest of the series — including another one on Derek Dorsett. And yet they let the most blatant dive in the series — by Sideshow Rinaldo — fool them earlier in the series. So inconsistent with the calls, all of the calls. New game, new rulebook.

10) The power play is just killing the Rangers in this series.I keep hearing the “killer instinct” cliche the Rangers supposedly lack. Well, if they had a power play, they wouldn’t be playing tonight. It’s gotten to the point where it almost creates instant momentum for the Flyers. Zero for the last 20. And it’s not on coach Scott Arniel. It’s on the athletes. They’ve been awful. They have not executed.

11) For how many years, the Rangers have benefited from bad ice because they had less skill and more grind than mosy opponents? Now they have some skill and, in this game at least, and maybe one other in the series, bad ice has bit them in the butt.

12) Man, that Jumping Jack-in-the-Box play, where a guy (Daniel Carcillo, Dominic Moore, Erik Gustafsson) jumps out of the box and scores, has been the best play of the series. The last two of them were absolute daggers.

13) I imagine Alain Vigneault, who has made a lineup change after the first two losses in this series, will do something before Game 7. I don’t think sticking with J.T. Miller over Carcillo in Game 6 had any impact on the outcome. Craig Berube’s move from Hal Gill to Gustafsson sure worked out, though. Not that it was really much of a decision.

601 Comments

Feeling really down this morning. Didn’t sleep much. Beyond bummed. The big guys got benched for long stretches last night. Hope they got the message. If it’s any consolation, mason is just normal on the road. He wasn’t normal last night. Henrik, the floor is yours. Can you outplay your counterpart tonight?

Not even going to think about how many games they get against the penguins until the final buzzer tonight and I know they get to play on.

Special teams, particularly the Rangers’ lack of effective power play is ultimately deciding this series. It’s too bad this series has gone this long, for I still believe the rangers are the better of the two teams.

That said, if the overall failure special teams doesn’t somehow cost the Rangers this series, it will cost them having any chance against Crosby & Co., by nature of letting this series drag on too far long.

Rangers better win tonight..because more games equals more game recaps here. The effort you put in here is unmatched by the team. The Flyers best players sure seem better than our best players…Nash is non existent and looks like he can’t wait to end his season…Hank had not been the better goaltender and Brad Richards is not worth the time or effort it takes to write his name. If AV thinks having the team play with no pulse every other night makes him better than Torts..well a first round elimination says something different. Man..I knew we would miss Dubinsky and Cally because you knew they were going to show up tonight..but a big win or humiliating loss is what I expect from this group..so While I hope for a win…it is probably more important Richards finishes his season healthy!

There isn’t a worse place to wear an opposing team’s colors than Philly. So..full marks for risking injury to support the team…given the team’s effort…you not only risked life and limb ..but probably paid too much for the honor! So we who weren’t there…thank you for your service!

Home sweet home……I actually feel good about tonight. Don’t think either team is very good though. More anxious about Richards and Nash because that will determine if we are legit for the next 5-7 yrs. not feeling good on that front though. Flyers stink

I still make that Rick Nash trade (and twice tomorrow), but he is a disappointment. There are a lot of apologists reminding me of all his assists & PK prowess. We traded TWO of those guys for Nash to do what he is supposed to do: SCORE.

I will defend Pull out, stupid penalties and all…..he goes to every dirty spot, has chemistry with his line, is annoying the flyers, hits hard, hits often, plays like he cares. Which 2 doesn’t that remind you of cough cough 61-19. Luv Giardi more but it was the worst pass ever instead of icing the puck.

We’d better hope there is no such thing as momentum in a series from game-to-game. And even assuming that’s true, Philly looked much better last night than they have all series. If they play like that again the Rangers better have all their onions on the table. And speaking of which, while the dreadful power play has been a part of the story in the series, the Rangers lack of onions in putting teams away is ther real story here. Because they are the more talented team.

Last night’s effort clearly illustrates what I’ve thought for most of this season. AV sends our boys out fired up and on the same page but once they’re on the ice and things don’t immediately go their way they collapse, not knowing who to follow. There’s a serious dearth of leadership on this team. This team needs a Captain and by that I don’t mean someone merely wearing a “C”.

Carp, there have been times when you’ve mentioned how BR has made the PP better and for a while, before the Olympics, I couldn’t disagree. But certainly, allowing BR to stay on for the whole PP , IMO, has disabled this PP. AV has obviously leaned on BR for his veteran presence or whatever he thinks Richards has, but other than being a shooter from the dot, Brad Richards should not be the quarterback on this PP!!!! Just shouldn’t. Can’t understand why the coaches don’t see that? Are they afraid of mixing it up? Not that we have Brian Leetch to go to in BR absence but Richards should be the shooter of the center and be on for half the PP, not the full 2 minutes!!!! That being said, the ineffective PP virus has infected all players who are out there for those 2, momentum turning, minutes!!!

What a pile of Rinaldo this team can look like if the top pair doesn’t play well. Thought McD regressed again along with Dan G’s stinker.
Pullout needs to come out. That line needs a shakeup. Miller for Pullout and Carcillo or Fast on Richard’s wing.
Thank God we got St. Louis – he is our best forward this series.
Nash – oy vey. If the MSG crowd had onions, they would let him hear it.
When the Flyers decide to play hockey, they can be dangerous. We missed a golden opportunity in Game 2 with help from the zebras against their JV goalie.
Our PP stinks – who has the most PP time on the team by a long shot?????

I have no confidence the rangers will prevail tonight because I have no confidence that the refs will call the game fairly. If I was a fan of another team and I watched the ranger flyers series, especially the past few games, I would think the refs and the league is trying hard to get philly to the second round against Pittsburgh. I don’t trust the refs in a one and done playoff match.

philly fans are the worse, especially flyer fans. That’s all they want to do is fist fight, most loud moth, belligerent a-holes. The only time I will go to philly is to visit my niece, other than that you couldn’t pay me to go to that dump of a area.

I blame their predicament on Nash. He has been ordinary to awful this playoff series. He is supposed to be our star player but is playing as if he is ready for summer. What a loser he turned out to be.

I pulled so hard for the team to get him. That makes me feel even worse. I thought we were getting the Nash who played against the CBJ earlier this season. Instead, we got Mr. Softie!

not me, never wanted Nash, I always thought he was overrated and stated so on this very blog when the rumors were flying about trading for him. I wish this was one time when I was wrong but now the rangers are stuck with him and that atrocious contract.

They gave this one away. Flyers looked fragile and unsure of themselves. They looked like it was too much pressure for them. Mason gives up a ton of rebounds, Rangers can’t finish. Pouliot takes a penalty, Girardi ( who’s been outstanding until last night ) makes a bad decision, and the Flyers get their confidence back. Hank made a bad decision on Gustaffson’s goal, that one was a real back breaker.

Stay positive, boneheads. We are hockey fans. Game 7, in our building. Your team has looked like a better team and deserves to win it. Isn’t it why we love this game?

I second the reversal of the trade. I would rather have Dubinsky and Anisimov and Erixon over Nash any day. They have heart. Nash is a jellyfish. Sather’s latest shiny new toy is, as usual, a bust. I also would rather have Gaborik instead of Nash. Oh wait we had him too.

My heart and brain hurt. Just when I was starting to really get into the fabric and makeup of this team, through all it’s faults (which are many) they pull an absolute stinker like last night and make me question it.

Had my own hockey game last night (we won and I scored a shorty while playing D!) so I only caught the game to the point where we were down 2-0.

I don’t want to overreact to this loss. Yes, it’s inexcusable that this team can’t handle prosperity. The Flyers were a turnover machine in the first but the puck just didn’t bounce to our (quite often) wide open guys.

Sounds like our D-men had a bad game.

I do have to harp on Nash though. If he isn’t going to score goals (which is why we brought him here) then he needs to compete in other areas of the ice. Maybe (like Boyle) it is his immense size to style of play ratio that frustrates me/us. He gets bounced of the puck quite easily for a guy that big.

He’s been a zero for me.

I hope to god the PP shows up tonight. If we can’t make them pay for penalties, it’s going to be a long night.

Carp – the notion that the prior game’s outcomes doesn’t matter is absurd. It might be a coin toss because yeah each three won and lost three games but mentally it matters.

If you don’t think the Flyers were sitting in their locker room last night thinking ‘We said we’d win game 4 and did, we rolled over them tonight, we can do it again in game 7′ you’re crazy. And the Rangers were probably sitting there thinking ‘We let this opportunity slip away’. Who’s going to have the mental edge today?

Players aren’t impacted by prior games in an ideal world – water off a ducks back. In the regular season over many months that might be true, who cares about the last game. But in the playoffs you can’t make that statement. I’m sure for a few guys, what happened the night before doesn’t enter their head at all but by the same token there are some that it does.

I think the proof is in this – if you asked a player, would you rather enter a game 7 having won or lost the prior game which would you chose? How many guys would say ‘I’d rather have lost game 6’? My guess is close to zero, which means it matters

Momentum exists.

Also, the record in the NHL when the teams trade wins and go seven games are 4-6 for the home team. And in preliminary round its 0-3 for the home team. Not a statistically significant number of games but interesting none the less.

The Rangers have to be disciplined enough stay out of the penalty box – especially if the refs are not going to call the Flyers on their splashy-divey ways.

The Rangers have to be disciplined enough on offense/PP to get bodies to the net (as well as some shots). As good as Mason has been, there are rebounds to be had but the Ranger forwards need to grow a set of onions and head to the net (that means you Rick Nash).

To quote/paraphrase Herb Brooks, the Rangers have to be disciplined enough to “Play Your Game!”

Blockness took a puck to the back last night to add to his collection of injuries. MacD has been slashed so many times it’s amazing his arms are still connected. They both played like crapola. Awful, awful games. Could it be that being targeted/blocking shots is just wearing them or they’re injured???

1) Simplify PP – enter zone (which they are having a lot of trouble doing). One pass and shot with a screen.

2) Stop shooting at his glove. Strahlman, Pouliot, Hagelin all firing at glove. Go the other way!

3) Man up on D. 1st goalie Girardi has to body Simmonds. It’s like boxing out in basketball. Girardi left Simmonds free again on another goal. And McDonagh did nothing to stop the 4th goal. Put your body on a man. Simple concept.

my big issue with the PP is that they are stuck in this umbrella trying to force through a shot from the top when Philly has CLEARLY adjusted to that.Why not try to work from the side wall or GASP behind the net?

That start we had last night was awesome though. The Brass/Zuch/Pullout line was all over the place. And if Brass’s post shot had gone in it would’ve been a different story. But then Giroux dives and it was all downhill from there. Let’s hope the boys can put this one behind them. LGR!

Amen, Draxen. And the Phlyers have decided to standup at the blue line and remain up there if the Rangers dump it in! They know the Rangers are just going to try to get the puck high. Why not try a PP where Richards takes the “point” down in the corner near the boards?

Doubt it can or will happen, but Sather needs to find a taker, and get what he can for Rick Nash over the Summer. I believe that the guy has been neutered by concussions. He does not want to be drooling out his oatmeal at the age of 40. He has shown that he is not clutch, and is nowhere near worth the $7.5MM he is being paid. Buy out Richards, move Nash and move forward. There will be some significant turnover anyway. Stralman still does not have a contract, he will probably get more on the open market and he should if he can.

in the video of that brawl. At 15 seconds, in the middle of the fray. A security officer throw 2-3 punches at one of the rangers fan and then all hell broke loose. That security officer needs to be arrested. He further incited the incident. WTF as soon as these fans see the security officer throw punches, it gives them all the go ahead they need to do what they did.

The NYR beat writers should pick up on this story and print it and make the Wells Fargo Center be forced to take action.

_I am getting a little sick of these ‘big name’ players with the big contracts essentially getting paid twice or more what other guys get, risking everything on them, not performing._

Toooooootally. Second tier “stars” seem like the quickest way to be a perennially low level threat, 7-16 overall team in this league. We have one real star. We’ve picked up three “stars” at the expense of half the roster and almost 1/3 of the cap. Just hit the reset button on those moves, ask really nicely to get Dubinsky, Callahan, Artie and those three 1st/2nds back and move on.

Out of all of our failures last night, and there were many (lack of big names playing with desperation, Hank not playing like ‘King’, stupid penalties (nice dive, Giroux!), being out coached and not changing up match ups and strategy), IF our d-men allow Flyer players to camp out in front of Hank all night, we lose.

Simmons, Hartnell, Giroux, they need to be attacked and dumped. Give anyone the time they had, and it’s lights out.

Yes, I bring in Diaz. Worry about his size, staleness, but he can help from the point. That PP needs some point help (FOR THE LAST 7 YEARS, anyone up there watching????)

I also consider highly bringing back Carcillo. I would have made that move with first change in Philly. To me, that was a no brainer. With second change, at home, friendly environment it’s a 50-50, going with Miller or Carcillo.

I still worry Miller is too inexperienced. Carcillo has played big games. Tough call for AV.

Pimpster, the bad penalties aside (and that Giroux was totally acting on that first PP. no way he didn’t help that call big time), AT LEAST Poulet goes to the boards and gives a semblance of effort!!!!

oh believe me, the heat is coming for Nash. It’s already mounting, on a steep upward trajectory. And maybe it will take him hearing it all season, next season. But I think he gets traded at some point. Probably gets one more year, it will be more of the same, and to me, he is of the mentality where he’ll just say I dont want to be here with all this spotlight and criticism and resentment. Maybe the rangers retain a little salary to sweeten the deal for the other team. Nash the player at 5.5 million is different to nash the player at 7.8 mil.

The Flyers want them to dump it in on PP because of Mason’s stick handling prowess. And the Rangers oblige. Short passes, using the trailer and his speed to gain the zone. Better puck support when they enter.

Yea, ilb. Entering the zone with NO speed and giving a little cross ice flip pass is *NOT* going to get it done! How can St. Louis be part of this? Seriously. He’s 39. He should know how to enter the zone with speed at this point.

XX/XX/14 – The New York Rangers have agreed to terms for an extension with Center Brad Richards. The deal, which spans the next 20 years at an AAV of $8.6M, was signed late last night at Sather’s stable.

Well, the one thing I _wouldn’t_ change on the PP is Richards on the point. His average-at-best speed into the zone, the way he can snap off 63 foot shots at will and his driven focus on “just please, Brad, be careful and do not allow a counter rush, that’ll mean you have to play one on one defense” even at the expense of actually trying to generate offense is the one thing we can all agree isn’t the problem.

Henrik Lundqvist said, “every loss hurts but I think we should see it as a great opportunity to go home and play game seven in New York….that is very special. It’s over, we can’t change this now and we need to see it as a great opportunity.”

TRANSLATION
“we’re done. And even if we pull it off, we’ll get swept by the Pens.”

Rough game to watch but… I’m confident we win tonight. We play MUCH better under pressure and that speaks to a lack of proper leadership on the ice to inspire constant pressure. That being said, we’ve been $$$ in game 7’s. I do believe Nash doesn’t want his legacy tarnished by being soft in the PO’s and is capable of changing that perception. This is why we secured Marty. McMonster will go off and Hank will be the King. Very confident tonight and it’s not wishful thinking. We’ll need a more consistent push if we want to make it out of round 2 however.

I think AV has been a good change for the Rangers all told, that “meeting” they are having today at noon is one of the few times I wish we had the piss and vinegar of Torts to maybe light a fire under their arses

Rangers’ history suggests Nash will get 1 more season before moving on. Gretzky, Jagr, Drury, Gomez, Gaborik…the shine on their season ticket salesmen wears off quickly, and they’re gone. St. Louis and probably Richards will be three and out, too. It’s the Rangers’ way. Upside about Nash is, he’ll still have much value as a top 2nd line talent who defends well. Downside is Sather will get less than he should.

But I’m calling 3-1, late empty netter to seal it + wake my daughter up + have my wife yell at me for waking my daughter up + me be ok with being yelled at and going upstairs to get my daughter back to sleep + Eric predicting a sweep by the Penguins.

Manny – I hear ya… but I was pretty nervous about last night. Would be more scared if it had been close but we lost last night not because of a herculean effort by Filthy but rather due to the inexcusable but not unfamiliar lethargy associated with thinking we had it locked up. Simmonds used to be a player I wanted – he’s too trash-talky for my liking. We were embarrassed and we’ll answer. We have enough winners to ensure that. Just hope the Garden steps up in the event we dont score first.

Dorsett needs to beat down Simmonds after drawing the first punch. Maybe not popular on this forum, but it needs to happen.

Look everyone, I am going to do something for all of you. Back off the ledge. I am a bit cash strapped, but my brother and I have decided to go to the game tonight. We have a 3 year streak, including the playoffs, of nothing buy wins. We arrive early, have a bloody mary during warmups, and we are undefeated. I decided to do this not only for all of you, but for all NYR fans.

You may love me, you may hate me, because I rig things, but today you will RESPECT me for what I am doing for all of you tonight.

I’d be embarrassed if they played that way tonight. In a way, if there has to be a game seven (and there does), it’s almost better that they played that way. They’ve bounced back really well from those types of games since the Olympic break.

I really expect a stellar game tonight. Whether that means a win will be determined.

“As for Sutherland, he’s all buffed up and chomps into his signature role with customary gusto. Is he up for a little fiery gunplay and ghastly torture? Sure. Will he unleash a sleeper hold or two? Absolutely. Does he utter his trademark “Dammit!” before the first hour is over? Of course. Even though we’re in the UK, this ain’t no “Downton Abbey.”

MIAMI–you are on fire! NY Rangers President and general manager Glen Sather announced that the Rangers have acquired forward Erik Cole from the Dallas Stars in exchange for their 2025 first round draft pick. Sakther commented that he was happy the DStars were willing to make a deal for such a future pick because “We did not have another first rounders left to trade until 2025.”

Replacements for tonite game: Carcillo, Diaz & Tabot plus a strong dose of passion and desperation. Henrik is in a slump and its only been the good Defense over the past month that’s disguised his real goals against average. It’s not like baseball where you play many games and in time you get out of your slump. He plays outstanding when it no longer counts, he just not the player he was two years ago where he literally stood on his head each and every game. Nash makes me sick to my freeken stomach. He’s done absolutely nothing, continuing to play around the perimeter. He’s got to go along with Richards who should pay the price of a ticket every night. We need a strong leader and motivator.

OMG!!! If St. Pepe’ Le Pew is refereeing the ranger game tonight the rangers are screwed. Bad enough goals are hard to come by our beloved team but when they actually score goals and St. Pepe’ Le Pew disallows the goals you know the rangers are in trouble.

So I guess Carp that no athlete is affected by the past ever, that’s what you’re saying right? It never, ever enters the player’s mind who won or lost a prior game? It can’t be confidence builder or distraction?

My question still stands, what percent of players would say they’d prefer to lose a game 6 to force a game 7? That’s all the proof you need that there is a difference between losing or winning the last game and whether it impacts a player’s psyche.

I don’t say nobody feels anything off a win or a loss, or that it doesn’t enter a players’ thoughts, or that confidence is built or torn down.

I’m saying, based on pure results, what happened in one game doesn’t affect the outcome of the next. It doesn’t.

Look at Columbus off those two big wins vs. Pitt. Or Detroit after the big win in Boston. Or any other series ever, including the six the Rangers have played the last three seasons. How did the Rangers win that game vs. Boston after losing all that momentum? Then get squished after winning that big game vs. Boston?

Rick Nash wants all of you to know that he woke up 15 minutes earlier than usual because of the burning desire within him to lead his team to victory.

Wanna have a fun comparison? Look at video of Messier standing on the line prior to opening faceoff during the playoffs. Look at the stare. Look at the intensity. Look at someone who’s determined to do what it takes to win.

Look at Nash. Chewing on his mouthpiece, staring cross-eyed into space or the ceiling. Eyes looking around trying to catch a butterfly passing by.

I know, it’s unfair. And it’s plain that Rick Nash is little more than a middle of the road player who’s gotten by being big and being talented (ie: not having to TRY)

And since we all know Sather has a fetish for big players who can (supposedly) score, Rick Nash is his dream player.

You have to wonder if Nash realizes his reputation as a competitive athlete is about to be irreparably tarnished by his lollygag play. Or does he even care? “I’m trying” he says. What I want to hear from someone who’s paid to score and paid to be a leader is “I haven’t got it done. I’ve let my teammates down. I have to do everything possible to change that.”

Gravy
A lot of “ifs” involved here, but if stastny is available and I can get a player for Stepan or brassard that addresses a need that the rangers have, I absolutely trade one of them.

There will be some available 2/3C via ufa as well as we probably keep one of Boyle/d Moops (I’m guessing Moops), so I think we will be ok at centre especially if stastny is our 1 and brass or step is our 2.

1:16PM: Ray Ferraro said on Leafs Lunch today, “this is my pet peeve when I watch players. I was an undersized guys, I see someone who is 6-4 and 230 and he rushes it over the side wall and takes his shot from there? If he cuts to the net and he is almost unstoppable.”

Ray adds, “there is no anger to his game and you don’t need to be slashing guys but you need some passion or anger and he doesn’t display it. They brought him in for the playoffs. Dom Moore has two in this playoffs. They pay him $7 million. I don’t see how you can see that and think that what you are doing is right. He isn’t even close”

For those with NHL Game Center, do Rangers games get blacked out, or is it just the local feed? Really getting tired of the nickel and dime increases from Dolanvision and thinking of cutting the cord altogether.

The truth is that they really miss THE Kreider! He plays big in big games, unlike Nash. They miss his speed and his size and hitting ability.

I would scratch DD in favor of Carcillo. The 4th line was at its most effective when he was on it. JT Miller has played well the last two games and should not be scratched.

Dan Girardi should never ever see the PP again.

If they get eliminated tonight they should strongly consider a retooling. They cant rebuild because Sather traded too many high draft picks for MSL. This team has too many soft players who wont or are afraid to go to the front of the net to bury the plethora of rebounds that Mason leaves out in the slot and top of the crease.

so what you are saying MrD, is that even if the Rangers beat both Philly and Pitt, but lose to Boston in the ECF you would not be happy because of the 1st round pick being lost. what I am saying is good playoff runs do not come around as often as you seem to think. beating Philly and Pitt, to me is worth losing a 1st rounder for. even if they lose to Boston in the ECF.

if Philly wins the series it will be because of the softy that Hank let up to tie game 4. Rangers up 2 games to 1, and 1 zip in the game. Philly is ready to break if the Rangers score the next goal, and Hank gives up the softy.

Thanks everyone. I was so down and upset about last night and thinking they have no chance tonight, and then I came here. The ledge is angry my friends. Like and old man yelling Potvin sucks. It’s always entertaining reading how this guy or that guy sucks. How this trade or that trade has been bad. On Nash, remember after 2012 playoffs how everyone was SCREAMING about Sather not getting us a scorer. So he went out and did just that. Can’t help it if Nash has had his bell rung a few too many times now. Now you all want to break up this whole team for a bunch of guys who can’t score but can play gritty and if we did that, everyone would be screaming we need a scorer :) The cycle never ends!! The difference last night, is that the Flyers finally realized they can’t intimidate us, so they decided to play hockey. They stood up at the blue line, and stopped our speed game. And the team is just not built for dump and chase hockey. But that doesn’t mean they can’t make it work for one game. Or they just play with more speed and better passing. The Flyers could have been HAD last night. There were fat rebounds we either missed or whiffed on early.

I said it earlier in the season that one key piece of the puzzle was missing and that’s a face off wiz. It helps the PP, it helps the breakout and the PK. It seemed everytime the Rangers had a faceoff on the PP in the Flyers zone, they lost it, and that was that. The best Rangers PP always start with a faceoff win and then puck movement. But it’s not happening.

Nice, relaxing rainy day, perfect for AV to make a cup of tea, sit back, relax, and read the Freddy Shero handbook on curved stick infractions in case we have to pull our goalie late and affording us a 6 on 3.

The one thing that Torts used to do that I wish AV would do is use timeouts when things start to get out of hand. After the breakaway goal, I would have called timeout. There was still plenty of game to go and he could have gotten the boys to calm down and get back to playing their game instead of looking like a desperate team trying to force everything, they may have come back.

Mason’s play has been absurdly overrated and I’m not really sure what games the dopes who’ve been singing his praises are watching. Was nice to see Duguay actually have the cajones to say the glove save on Pouliot was a nothing save – sad that people who watch games every night for a living like Joe Micheletti are unable to spot when a player shoots a puck straight into a goaltender’s glove.

All that being said, and for as big fan a him as I am, Henrik Lundqvist’s playoff performances are starting to cement him as the most overrated goaltender in the sport.

“Yeah, this is the first series where Hank hasn’t “stole” a game. He’s due for a shutout. Hopefully tonight’s the night.”

In fairness, I think part of that is because NYR have outplayed PHI by a pretty considerable margin over the course of the series. Has there really been a game Hank could have stolen? Game 2 is the only one I can really think of.

If someone had the time to compile playoff stats of Lundqvist and his contemporaries, I bet he’d have as good or better stats than most of them. Then, compare the GAA to their team’s GFA, and I’ll bet that Hank plays on teams that score less goals.

I don’t look at the series losses fondly. I look at back at the series wins fondly. so I would rather beat Pitt, and take my chances, even if that means they lose to Boston. I would sacrifice my 1st round pick every year for a chance in the ECF.

Lundqvist may have to steal tonight’s if the Rangers stay with that high-energy, all-pucks-to-the-net approach and don’t get a bounce. I hope they’ll try to make plays instead, against Philly’s static defenders, but that takes patience.

it is about the big save at the big time for Goalies in the playoffs. the Rangers play a lot of game 7’s because of Hank. he gave game 4 away, and turned this into a 7 games series. give me Crawford in a big spot.

MD and bulldog, not to interject, but it’s an apples and oranges argument. I would trade a first round pick for a chance to play Boston, but I would not trade my first round pick if I knew they lost to Boston.

I don’t buy the cover story the MSG folks were going with about the Rangers not getting any of the bounces. The Rangers played well for about 5 minutes, got flagged for a penalty when Giroux went down like he’d been shot with a cannon, and then they called it a night. Hard to make excuses for lucky bounces when the preponderance of your effort for a night came in the first 5 minutes of the game.

The pre-Nash trade team was hard to play against almost every single night. That’s why they were so loved. This team, while not there in terms of consistent effort, almost always bounces back hard when needed. Therefore, I expect that again and I expect a win.

The problem with anyone rather lose to Pitt than win and then lose to Boston is that you have to get past Pitt to lose to Boston, and if you make the ECF, you are closer to the Cup finals. Unless you think there’s no chance in heck you could beat Boston. What if you went down the first game against Boston and Rask gets hurt? You have to get there to find out.

Anyway, reading the gloom and doom here, I’m now positive the Rangers will win tonight. They will come out hard, score two quickies and coast the rest of the way. I look at it this way. We really were the better team for 5 games. Philly is the better team for one game, and suddenly we can’t beat them?

Oh, and all these stats (both ways) make me more nervous than anything….these type of stats really don’t mean much unless your the Chicago Cubs.

maybe I have been watching this team a lot longer than most of you, so I really don’t get where you are coming from. I was very young in 74, but counting 74, I have seen them play in 7 conference or what they used to be called semi finals. thats it 7. you guys seem to think playoff runs come around all the time. you know if they don’e make the ECF this year, there are no promises that they get to go to the ECF next year. playoff runs do not come around that often.

But you’re acting like the ECF is a deal, Bull Dog, that’s where we disagree. Final four doesn’t matter in hockey and, going forward, logic dictates a 1st round pick stands a better chance of helping than a 2nd round pick. If there’s a cost to losing later *but still losing*, especially before the finals, I don’t see the worth.

Mister D, as good as that pre-Nash team was, this team is MUCH more fun to watch. The grind of watching all those 2-1 games after awhile was tough on the ticker. By the time that team got to the Devils they were done. Their best players were overplayed and tired. This team, if they get past Philly, is much better equipped to not be so mentally and physically exhausted if they got that far.

Mister D, but how do you know they will lose to Boston unless you get there? In hindsight, sure, but I have to take the chance to play Boston, and get a shot at making the Finals, then not, even if it means losing a pick.

And what if you got the finals and lost? Would it STILL not be worth losing the draft pick?

some of the more recent fans have probably been duped to an extent by the Rangers making the playoffs with regularity since the lockout roughly 10 years ago but you’re basically right.

to put things in perspective, this team has been in 3 conference finals in the past 20 years. other than the win against the Devils in 1994, they’ve won a total of 3 games in the other 2 series. the Rangers haven’t had this history of deep runs that we can automatically pencil them into anything. it’s good that they make the playoffs, but there’s nothing automatic for this franchise.

Jesus, if one more person counters my comment with “but what if you win in the ECF” or “don’t you want a chance” … I’m going to probably respond again because there’s still almost 4 hours until the game.

Again: LOSING IN THE ECF is the worst case, not getting there. I want to get there right now because that’s the only way to win the Cup. Losing there would be the worst.

Losing in the ECF is the worst case scenario. As an organization or a fan, given a choice, the choice is always to advance to the ECF, because a team in the ECF is then four wins away from competing for a title.

To me the worst case is losing to an inferior Philly team. Losing to Pit is really no disgrace, and getting to Boston, despite losing is still progress in my book, even if it means sacrificing a first rounder. What it means is that the team is making progress, and it’s not that far off from being a serious contender. Having a low first round pick isn’t going to make us a contender necessarily. Besides, we seem to have a better record with our lower round picks. And Sather seems to enjoy trading for someone ELSE’S former first rounders!

count me among the group who considers the Rangers getting to the ECF this year as playing with house money. The Flyers aren’t that great and Pittsburgh is highly beatable. Let the Rangers somehow find themselves in a series (where they’ll be completely overmatched) against Boston and I’ll sign for it right now.

_Losing in the ECF is the worst case scenario. As an organization or a fan, given a choice, the choice is always to advance to the ECF, because a team in the ECF is then four wins away from competing for a title._

Three things to give you pause as a Ranger fan: 1) I thought, right from the start that the Flyers were better than their play early in this series- last night, I thought they actually played their first good game of the round-is it possible that the Rangers have let them hang around long enough to finally find their game. 2) Is the physical nature of the way the Flyers play, which is designed to wear you down in a long series, finally taking a toll on our D? Last night I thought I saw some guys “flinching”, if you will. Anyway something was causing all that panic in our own zone. And 3) I expect the Flyers to come right at the Rangers tonight (unlike game 1 where it appeared to me they were trying to steal one late on the road). If they get up on us, the building could get suicidal and crazy- booing some of our higher priced players. We’d better be ready with our “A” game when they drop the puck tonight.

No problem, coos. The Cup winner gets 30th, and the loser gets 29th. And, the remaining rankings are based on points in round groupings. So the two teams that lose in the Conference finals get 27th and 28th, with 28th going to the team with the better regular season record.

Another game tonight with similar results for the team and Nash and that Nash-O-Meter will be pointing out if town. It will be his last game in Ranger Blue. Book It AND Take it to the Bank. NMC and all, he’ll be a goner by draft day.

Finally, I can’t let this pass. Josh with McDonugh as the 2nd Star of Last nights debacle???? Josh, are you serious?

Coos, once you get into the mid-to-late 20s, the value gap is pretty insignificant overall, its not like 23 is great and 26 sucks. The point is 26 is far better than 56 which is the only real comp that matters here, atleast to us.

Agree with your first point about Philly finding their game last night and that possibly spelling trouble for the Rangers who I think are in trouble anyway. Disagree about the Garden though – the building wants results and getting behind the team gets those results more than booing. I think if they play a stinker and are well behind late in the game it could get ugly.

The Blues have averaged the most time on the PP so far, with 8:45 per game. Even if that was doubled for each team (a very high estimate), it would still mean that over 70% of the game was played 5 on 5. And that doesn’t include OT.

As was the photo of Richards with the broadway hat smiling as he put in the first piece.

You want to make a puzzle? Then it should have FOUR pieces. One for each playoff round you gotta win. End of story. Winning three games in a playoff series means NOTHING. Just means you DIDN’T WIN THE SERIES.

EAST
Rangers over Flyers in 5.
Penguins over Blue Jackets in 6.
Bruins over Red Wings in 7.
Canadiens over Lightning in 5.
WEST
Wild over Avalanche in 7.
Blues over Blackhawks in 6.
Ducks over Stars in 4.
Sharks over Kings in 6.

Carp- hey Rick, I have question from a bonehead. It comes to me via the Indiana state prison, he was locked up for going insane in a hotel bar after your game seven performance. Why are you such a loser?

Fat Guy – that chip clip is classico. I remember being at a brunch where a guy at the bloody mary barrel filled up his cup to the brim, and then leaned over the barrel, dripping his red saliva into the bloody mary tub, careful not to drip on the floor.